Tag: The Grey Estates

Last year, ahem had a coming out party with the exceptionally strong Just Wanna Be EP, ensuring their name would be firmly imprinted into the upper echelon of basement punk bands operating in the upper Midwest. The trio’s been playing shows in support of that release since it was unveiled and now have a new song to offer up, for a great cause. “Sweet Tooth” serves as the lead-off track for The Grey Estates’ forthcoming Sugar Rush Volume 2 compilation, which will see all proceeds going towards benefiting QORDS (Queer Oriented Radical Days of Summer), an overnight camp that aims to empower and embolden queer and gender non-conforming youth through emphasizing the communal aspect of making music.

“Sweet Tooth” finds the band picking up right where they left off, firing on all cylinders and working thoughtful compositions into unbridled, immediate energy. Centering the narrative of “Sweet Tooth” on what could be a poetic allegory or could just be face-value fun, ahem give the song everything they’ve got, relentlessly upping its momentum even as it hurtles forward at breakneck pace. A snotty refrain, carefully balanced harmonies, and a bridge that stands as one of the best 28 second runs of music anyone’s likely to hear in a basement punk song all year, “Sweet Tooth” stands defiantly triumphant by the time it comes to its explosive, abrupt close.

The song is both a vital addition for what will undoubtedly be one of the year’s more meaningful releases and a potent reminder of ahem’s formidable strength (as well as an indicator of their growing confidence). It’s an embrace of an outsize, outsider identity and it’s a kick in the face of anything that dares stand in its way. While the running time of the track may be slight, its significance is not. “Sweet Tooth” is something worth celebrating; addictive, unashamed, and true to itself, the song’s an unlikely anthem for the displaced. Help the cause it’s supporting and give it the love it deserves.